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NEPAL, CHINA MEET MONDAY

Kathmandu, 23 Aug, : Foreign Secretary Arjun Bahadur Thapa is leaving for Beijing on Friday evening leading a three-member delegation to attend the 10th Meeting of the Bilateral Consultative Mechanism to be held in Beijing, China, RSS reports.. Secretary Thapa is scheduled to hold talks with his Chinese counterpart Mr. Liu Zhenmin, Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of China on 26 August. Other members of the delegation include Joint-Secretary Ambika Luintel and Under Secretary Rita Dhital of the Ministry. The meeting will review pertinent issues in Nepal-China relationship and discuss new directions and dimensions of strengthening bilateral ties. In the meeting, a whole gamut of issues relating to bilateral relations and other issues of mutual interest will be discussed. Luintel told RSS that the meeting would also review the implementation part of the agreements of the ninth meeting held in Nepal last year. The Consultation Mechanism is an agreement between Nepal and China to establish regular contact between officials from the Foreign Ministries of both the countries which was set up in 1996 to provide a platform to discuss matters of mutual concern and cooperation. Meetings are held alternately in the capital cities on a mutually agreed date. Both the countries have set up three such mechanisms at the level of Foreign Minister, Foreign Secretary and Director General. During the meeting, discussions would be held on trade and commerce, investments, infrastructure construction and the projects run in Nepal in the Chinese assistance. Similarly, discussions would be held on ways and means to reduce the huge trade deficit with China, expand Nepali products´ market in China and attract Chinese investment in hydropower and tourism sectors and other potential hydel projects. Furthermore, the meeting would review the implementation of the agreements signed during Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi´s visit to Nepal held two months ago. Joint Secretary Luintel said that construction of the Regional International Airport in Pokhara and expediting loan process from Export-Import Bank of China, procurement of aircrafts for Nepal Airlines in concessional loan including grant assistance for two aircraft would also top the agenda for discussions in the meeting. Meanwhile, talking to RSS, Secretary Thapa refuted the news regarding China´s preparations to establish a consulate in Nepal and urged the concerned sides not to disseminate news in an irresponsible fashion. "I urge all to disseminate news by considering the seriousness and sensitivity of the issues," Secretary Thapa said. He was of the view that media should not disseminate news that destabilizes the mutual relations between the two countries.
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NEA ACTING CHIEF

Kathmandu, 23 Aug.:: The government has assigned responsibilities of carrying out the day-to-day functions of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) to Laba Bahadur Ghimire so that the daily works at the state-owned power utility are not affected in the wake of the arrest of high ranking officials there on corruption

Charge, RSS reports..

Minister for Energy Umakanta Jha today assigned the responsibility on Deputy Managing Director Ghimire to carry out the functions as the Acting Executive Director.

Ghimire has been given the responsibility of the Acting Executive Director after the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) took 22 high-ranking officials at NEA, including Executive Director Rameshwar Yadav in custody in connection with investigation, spokesperson at the Ministry of Energy Keshav Dhwaj Adhikari told RSS

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MAOIST CHIEF ASSURES MAJORITY FOR PARTY

Kathmandu, 23 Aug : UCPN (Maoist) chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal has described the election to the Second Constituent Assembly slated for November 19 as the event that would make historic decision either in favour of the ruling class or the

oppressed castes, RSS reports from Pokljara. .

Declaring open the Third National Convention of the Tamu National Liberation Front Nepal on Friday, he stressed that the Nepalis should give his party a clear majority in the elections for writing a constitution with federalism and federalism with identity.

He said that the voting process would be employed straight away to decide if consensus is not reached on the contentious issues within few days after the CA election for ensuring a new constitution is promulgated.

The UCPN (Maoist) chairman claimed that the country will never get a constitution if it was not made by the Constituent Assembly.

Party leader Dr. Baburam Bhattarai said that the First Constituent Assembly was dissolved as some forces did not want to go for identity-based federalism.

Another leader Narayan Kaji Shrestha cautioned the party cadres to be cautious as some forces were conspiring to foil the CA election and push the country towards uncertainty.

He stressed that his party was for federalism with identity alone and called on all to not go after any hearsay being spread against federalism.

Coordinator of the convention organizing committee Bakhat Singh Tamu presided over the programme in which other leaders of the party including Lilamani Pokhrel, Gopal Kiranti, Onsari Gharti and Lokendra Bishta Magar also expressed their views.

The three-day convention brings together 50 representatives and observers of the party from 40 districts,

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